Kokova Magazine

We saw the Cake and Bake Show London taking its first steps in 2012 - before it headed off to Manchester for the start of 2013.

Well now the time had come for the show to return to London, to see if it could once again capture the hearts of the baking nation. Again drawing in the crowds with a plethora of demonstrations and discounted show offers available from the many stalls offering their baking wares, over the course of the three days from the 13th - 15th September 2013.

We went along yesterday (14th September) to review the show and if the crowd gathering an hour before the doors were to open was a sign of things to come then we certainly expected a busy day.

This year the organisers had allocated much more walking space around the arena and between the stalls, to accommodate the return of the huge crowds that had engulfed each stand last year - making it almost impossible to see what some had to offer. And with many duplicate products available around the hall, visitors had ample choice from a variety of vendors; another plus for easing the pressure from individual stalls.

Yet the extra room this year did little to ease the attraction and most stalls once again were surrounded by a heaving throng of buyers all wanting to cash in on the great savings available throughout the event. When something is this popular there is not a lot more any organisation can do other than to hope that eventually everyone gets to the front of the queue.

Bread and cakes were literally flying off the counters, with many visitors seated on the floor in every available space, relishing in their purchase and consuming it on the spot before going back for more to take away home.

For those who felt the show didn't have as much to offer as they anticipated, we would urge them to take another look at the floor plan to discover any turns they may have missed. We found ourselves walking around corners we thought we had already seen only to discover new stalls, ready for sampling.

Winning the Event of the Year at the British Media Awards, the Cake and Bake Show 2013 can only be described as a complete success and we cannot see what more organisers can do to make this event more accessible at its current location.

Sometimes something is so popular that someone has to miss out.

For more information on the Manchester Cake & Bake Show visit www.thecakeandbakeshow.co.uk

Highlighted Producers

For us a few stalls offered something a little bit different and out of the ordinary - or offered such great savings we knew they would become a 'must-have' on our Christmas list!

Tea and Biscuit Truffles caught our attention - and taste-buds - from the Chocolate Alchemy, a Leicestershire based company offering a range of chocolate products including British bean to bar. Dan Murphy, Lisa Dobriskay and Lousie Finney were on hand to answer any questions and tell us about this emerging company, catering for all your chocolate needs including weddings, corporate gifts and private functions.

For everything blueberry we found the Blueberry Bros, who have been growing near Lustleigh, Devon since 2002. Blueberry marzipan, brownies, muffins and jam a plenty - made using local producers as well as their own. Who knew the humble blueberry could be so versatile - their range even includes cheese.

Steve Baxter, director of Foodie Flavours Ltd was showcasing his range of authentic food flavourings now available to the end user. All gluten- egg- and dairy-free, the flavours we sampled held high standards to compare too and promised impressive results.

When it came to lunch we couldn't resist warm pies from the New Zealand Gourmet Pie Company.

Cooking and cake decorating at home is big business and with many companies offering consumers time-saving designs, effortless solutions to creative cakes and healthier options to preparing your food we sought out a few companies that we felt offered that little bit more.

The oven you bake in can make all the difference to your cakes and we loved the 'Slide & Hide' design from Neff which went straight onto our wishlist. Following close behind was the Castline Cookware from Berghoff.

Newly available in the UK, the JTC OmniBlend blender does everything the Vitamix does - at half the price - making it one of the world's most affordable commercial quality blender for your home.

And when it comes to decorating your chocolates and creating amazing cakes the Cake Decorating Company's chocolate transfer sheets and Claire Bowman's Cake Lace make it easy.